Nissan's Secret 240SX Project

As Toyota's FT-86 stole the limelight at the Tokyo Auto Show last year, we hear that Nissan is back at work on its own compact, affordable rear-drive sports car, one that will spiritually succeed the 240SX that was discontinued in 1998. Recent reports of the reemergence of the Urge Concept being trailered around uncovered have ignited rumors of another rear-drive sports car joining the 370Z in Nissan's lineup. Could Nissan be fine-tuning the Urge chassis for a future 240SX? Our sources at Car Top in Japan say it is a distinct possibility.

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That the 240SX has maintained its popularity among youthful enthusiasts, even after its demise, is common knowledge. It's still a popular drift car, and many have asked Nissan to bring it back. There were reports that Nissan was actually working on a 240SX successor, but stopped the program last year because of the worldwide recession. The new 240SX won't be like the 2-seat Urge (which would be more of a Mazda MX-5 competitor), but more like the Foria concept car that was shown at the 2005 Tokyo Auto Show.

Our guess is that the car would come powered by a 1.8-liter turbocharged inline-4 that sends about 200 bhp to the rear wheels. It'll be built on the same platform as the 370Z and Infiniti G37, and come as a 2+2. The car will probably feature 4-wheel steering and the choice of a 6-speed manual gearbox or 5-speed automatic transmission. Expect the suspension to be MacPherson struts up front and multilink at rear. The price should be at or below the $20,000-mark and reach dealerships in 2012.